Tibet to reopen to foreigners Wednesday: state media

Dan Martin , AFP
Published: Tuesday, June 24, 2008



BEIJING - China will allow foreign tourists back into Tibet from Wednesday, state-run Xinhua news agency reported, lifting a ban imposed after it cracked down on anti-Chinese unrest three months ago.

The announcement late Tuesday came just three days after China paraded the Beijing Olympic torch through the Tibetan capital Lhasa in a tightly controlled relay which proved the Himalayan region was now "safe" for foreigners, the report said.

"The success of the recent torch relay proved Tibet to be more stabilized and the time was right to reopen," it quoted Tanor, deputy director of the regional tourism authority, as saying.

Tibet is safe. We welcome the domestic and foreign tourists."

Beijing kicked all tourists and foreigners out of Tibet after violent protests against Chinese rule erupted in mid-March, prompting a massive Chinese security clampdown.

The crackdown triggered global condemnation and protests around the world over China's heavy-handed control of the remote Himalayan region.

China allowed mainland Chinese tour groups back in at the end of April, followed by visitors from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan in May.

But it had so far maintained the ban on foreign visitors and overseas journalists, saying Tibet remained "unsafe" for foreigners due to the violent actions of "separatist" forces loyal to the Dalai Lama, Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, whom Beijing blames for the unrest.

Overseas pro-Tibet groups, however, have said China was using the safety issue as an excuse to hide a massive campaign of arrests and political "re-education" aimed at extinguishing any support for the Dalai Lama.

Tanor was quoted as saying two Swedish tourists would arrive in Lhasa on Wednesday, followed by four from Singapore on Sunday.

The report gave no information on any restrictions visitors may face or whether foreign journalists also would be allowed into the Himalayan region.

China's foreign ministry could not immediately provide further information when contacted by AFP.

China's crackdown sparked international protests that dogged the torch's month-long global journey in April before it arrived in China for a nationwide relay.

Exiled Tibetan leaders say 203 people died in the Chinese clampdown on the riots, which began in Lhasa after monks led peaceful protests to mark a 1959 uprising and later spread across the Tibetan plateau.

China has reported killing one Tibetan "insurgent" and says "rioters" were responsible for 21 deaths.

Authorities have released 1,157 people who were involved in the Lhasa riots, Xinhua reported on the eve of Saturday's Olympic torch relay, a move seen as an attempt to defuse tension ahead of the event.

A total of 42 people have been punished by the courts, with another 116 awaiting trial, it said, quoting a senior Tibetan official.

With the Beijing Olympics set to start in less than two months, China faced the prospect of the Games being tarnished by continued overseas criticism of its Tibet policies if it were to have kept the region sealed off.

State media reports also have lamented the impact of the crackdown on the region's tourism industry.

Officials had previously predicted visitors to the remote region would hit five million in 2008, with tourist revenue soaring 24 percent.

But just 120,000 people have visited Tibet since the end of April, according to official figures.

The Olympic Torch in Lhasa ,TIBET

(LHASA, June 21) -- The Olympic torch has set out from Norbulingka and starts its journey to Tibet's capital Lhasa, which literally means "place of the gods", on Saturday.

A total of 156 torchbearers including 75 Tibetans will run the Lhasa leg, which covers 9.3 kilometers.

The run is scheduled to end at the hilltop at Potala Palace.




The majestic Potala Palace with its glistening roofs is the pinnacle of the labor and wisdom of the Tibetan race. It is a wonder in the history of Oriental architecture, and the pride of the lands of snow. It is symbol of the ancient city of Lhasa, and also a spot unique to Tibet.

The Potala Palace was built by Tubo King Songtsan Gambo in the 7th century. It underwent renovation during the time of the 5th Dalai Lama Ngawang Lhosang Gyamco in the 17th century. However, the Potala Palace didn't undergo a thorough repair until the 1980s. Standing atop the Red Hill, the Potala Palace was built along the slope of the hill. It extends 360 meters from east to west and 140 meters from south to north. Rising 13 stories, the palace is 115.7 meters tall. Palace walls were erected with granite slabs, the thickest part measuring five meters.

The Potala Palace is made up by the White and Red Palaces, with the Red Palace in the center flanked on both sides by the White Palace. The Red Palace houses Buddha halls and stupas for the remains of the successive generations of the Dalai Lama. The White Palace, built entirely of granite slabs, is where the Dalai Lamas of various generations live and handle government and Buddhist affairs. Its western wing contains dorms for monks. When visitors reach the Potala Palace from the south, they will arrive at the giant City Gate and Shoi Village, which holds many ancient buildings down a zigzagging stone path leading to the Puncog Duinam Gate. Upon going through the gate, they will reach the Deyang Hall Square, where various generations of the Dalai Lama, senior monks and lay officials watched Tibetan opera, singers and dance performances. East of the square is Zelhazha, the site of the old monk official school, and west of the square is the gate to the White House. Many priceless frescoes hang on the walls of the entrance hall, some depicting the construction of the Potala Palace and the Jokhang Monastery in the 7th century, and others illustrating the story of Tubo Minister Gar Tongtsan going to Chang'an (present-day Xi'an and capital of the Tang Dynasty) to greet Tang Princess Wencheng upon her arrival in Lhasa, where she married Tubo King Songtsan Gambo.

Coqenxag, the Eastern Hall, is where many generations of Dalai Lamas came to power and were enthroned upon reaching the stipulated age of 18. A horizontal board reading "Promoting Buddhism in Defense of the Border," written by Qing Dynasty Emperor Tongzhi, hangs above the entrance. The top floor contains two living chambers. As they enjoy sunshine all day long, the chambers are called the West Sunshine Hall (also called Nyiwei Soinam Legyi, which used to be the living chambers for the 13th Dalai Lama) and the East Sunshine Hall (also called Gaindain Namse, which used to be the living chambers for the 14th Dalai Lama). Major buildings of the Red Palace include the Hall for the Holy Stupas. The largest of the holy stupas is for the 5th Dalai Lama. Called Choiling Gyamgyia, "a grand building in the world," the stupa is 14.85 meters tall. Its base and body are wrapped in 110,000 taels of gold and inlaid with 1,500 gems. The Red Palace also holds a Western Hall. Also called Sishi Puncog, the Western Hall houses the stupa for the 5th Dalai Lama and its interior is a world of frescos telling stories of his life. One section depicts the 5th Dalai Lama paying homage to Qing Dynasty Emperor Shunzhi in Beijing in 1652. Galleries on each floor of the Red Palace contain many frescoes. The gallery on the second floor contains even more frescoes, including one which tells of the first construction of the Potala Palace through the commissioning of the Red Palace and the holding of the Lessor Grand Summons Ceremony. The highest point of the Red Palace is the Hall of Deterrence to the Three Worlds, or the Sasum Namgyal Hall. This hall enshrines the portrait of Emperor Qianlong and an imperial longevity tablet written in the four languages of Han, Tibetan, Mongolian and Manchurian.

Between the Red and White Palaces is Qoigyi Zhapu, or the Cave for the Prince of Dharma. Legend has it that this was the place Tubo King Songtsan Gambo and his wives Tang Dynasty Princess Wencheng and Nepalese Princess Bhributi practiced Buddhism. The statues of Songtsan Gambo, Princess Wencheng, Princess Bhributi, Mangsa Trijang, and Tubo Ministers Tome Sangbozha and Gar Tongtsan are enshrined inside the cave. Pagpa Lhakhang, the Hall of the Goddess of Mercy, which was built much earlier than other halls in the palace, is located at the top of Qoigyi Zhapu. Above the entrance is a panel with an inscription reading "Blissful Soil Nourishing Miraculous Fruits," also written by Qing Emperor Tongzhi.

On the top of the Potala Palace are seven of what we call Golden Tops, glistening in the sunshine. They follow Tibetan and Han architectural styles, and make the Potala Palace majestic and holy. Inside the palace are preserved numerous Buddhist scriptures, tangka painting scrolls, statues of Buddha, sculptures, brocades and silks produced during the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911), chinaware, gold and silver wares, golden sheets of appointment and golden seals of authority, which emperors of feudal Chinese rulers granted to Dalai Lamas of various generations, as well as a golden urn called Jinbenbaping, which Qing Emperor Qianlong had cast in his 57th year of reign (1792) for the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama and the Panchen Erdeni. When one of the two Living Buddhas has demised, his soul boy would be determined by drawing a lot from the golden urn.

Olympic torch relay cut to one day in Tibet

Olympic torch relay cut to one day in Tibet


BEIJING (AFP) — China has scrapped its original plans for a three-day Olympic torch relay tour of Tibet and will send the flame there just for one day this weekend, a Beijing Olympic official said Wednesday.

Zhu Jing, a spokeswoman at the Beijing Games organising committee, said the decision to cut short the relay and run it through the Tibetan capital Lhasa on Saturday was taken following last month's earthquake in Sichuan province.

"Following the earthquake on May 12, BOCOG has announced adjustments to the domestic legs of the torch relay," Zhu said.

"The Tibet leg of the relay will be on June 21, with the relay taking place in Lhasa."

The torch was originally scheduled to tour Tibet for three days from June 19 to 21 as part of its long international journey to the Games being hosted by the Chinese capital in August.

The torch is currently travelling through Xinjiang, a largely Muslim region in China's northwest, on a three-day, four-city tour scheduled to end Thursday.

The stops in Xinjiang and the Tibetan regions of China are regarded as the most sensitive of the domestic relay route, which runs for thousands of miles (kilometres) over three months through every part of the country.

China accuses Muslim separatists in Xinjiang of plotting terrorist attacks on the Games and stepped up security in the region ahead of the relay.

Tibetans are also accused of targeting the Olympics, following a crackdown on anti-Chinese government unrest in Lhasa in March in which exiled Tibetan leaders say 203 people died.

China has reported killing one Tibetan "insurgent" and says "rioters" were responsible for 21 deaths.

Despite the unrest China stuck with its original plan to take the torch relay to the top of Mount Everest on May 8 using a separate flame from the one used on the relay route through the rest of the country.

The ascent took place under tight security and triggered protests from exiled Tibetan groups who said it was a provocation and politicised the torch relay.

China's rule over Tibet was a major rallying cry for protesters who dogged the torch's month-long global journey in April before it came here.

Pro-Tibet activists have argued that the leg in Lhasa should be cancelled due to the unrest.

New York-based Human Rights Watch said Chinese authorities were using the relay as a propaganda tool and had been carrying out arbitrary arrests to prevent protests during the relay.

"It is irresponsible for the Chinese government to deliberately send a torch into a powder keg, and the IOC (International Olympic Committee) and Olympic sponsors should ask Beijing to cancel this part of the relay," the group said in a statement.

BOCOG said that 50 journalists from 31 news organisations would be allowed to cover the relay in Lhasa, which has been off limits to foreign reporters and tourists since the crackdown on unrest there three months ago.

"We will make proper arrangements for media coverage of the relay in Lhasa," said Zhu.

She declined to say whether scrapping the original three-day torch leg was connected to security fears in the Himalayan region following the unrest.

"The adjustment to the Tibet leg of the torch relay is because of the earthquake, which has caused us to make several changes to the original route," said Zhu.

According to the original torch relay schedule, the Tibetan leg was to be followed by a trip to neighbouring Qinghai and then Gansu province, which both have ethnic Tibetan communities.

Zhu said the future route had yet to be officially announced. Torch relay organisers in the Qinghai capital of Xining told AFP that they had no information and calls to the torch relay office in Gansu's capital Lanzhou went unanswered.

China shortens Tibet leg of Olympic torch relay

China shortens Tibet leg of Olympic torch relay

By HENRY SANDERSON –

BEIJING (AP) — The controversial Tibetan leg of the Olympic torch relay has been cut to just one day because of the devastating earthquake in Sichuan province, a Beijing Olympics official said Sunday.

The torch's stop in Tibet — originally set for three days — has been criticized by Tibet activist groups who see it as an attempt by Beijing to symbolize its control over Tibet. China says it has ruled Tibet for centuries, although many Tibetans say their homeland was essentially independent for much of that time.

The cut to one day came after the relay was stopped for three days last week as part of a national period of mourning declared by the government to honor the victims of the May 12 earthquake in Sichuan province that left nearly 63,000 people dead and almost 24,000 others missing.

The announcement also came two months after a violent uprising in ethnic Tibetan areas throughout China led to a security clampdown in the region. China has said life is returning to normal, and monasteries are reopening in Tibet's capital, Lhasa. But foreigners are still banned and until recently Chinese were advised to stay away.

"All I can be sure of is that the Lhasa relay has been shortened to one day," said Li Lizhi of the Beijing Olympic torch relay center.

"It's probably either on June 18 or June 19, as is tentatively set now. But it is still open to future adjustment," she said.

Olympic organizers announced days ago that the Sichuan leg of the relay had been shifted from mid-June to early August because of the quake. The leg now will run from Aug. 3 to Aug. 5 instead of June 15 to June 18.

It was not clear if the torch relay would still go through Mianyang, one of the hardest-hit areas, as planned. The Beijing games start Aug. 8.

"It is too early to tell," said Zhang Liang, who is also with the torch relay center. "Every city has been preparing for it very hard and we will make the final decision based on how well each place recovers."

So far the torch has had a smooth relay in mainland China, uninterrupted by the protests over Tibet and human rights that dogged parts of its international tour.

Earlier this month, Chinese mountaineers raised the Olympic torch at the summit of Mount Everest, the world's highest peak, producing the triumphant image that China has longed for in the run-up to the Beijing Olympics.

The Everest torch was separate from the main Olympic flame, which is on a three-month tour of China after a one-month trip around the world.

Activists upset with Chinese government policies, especially pro-Tibet independence groups, used that trip around the world to stage protests to highlight their causes.

source courtesy :ap press
writer:HENRY SANDERSON